The student loans are owed to the government, not the schools, right? Or are guaranteed by the government anyway, right? So discharging it in bankruptcy doesn't change the economics from the school's point of view.

Federal guarantees of all student loans should discontinue. It's really that simple, unfortunately. It's having a massive distorting effect, and driving up the cost of college education for everyone, largely negating the benefit it was supposed to confer. Loans may be cheaper, but because it's driving up demand exponentially, and eliminating payment risk, colleges are just jamming it to students in the form of massive tuition increases.

Some scholarship / grant programs can certainly remain to help those who are incapable of funding from paying, but otherwise, eliminate it.

Of course, this will hit the middle class the most. Those who are wealthy pay their way, and those who are poor get need-based grants. But that's not really different than what goes on now.

Without the feds standing behind everything, EVERYONE needs to analyze what a college degree is "worth". Banks or colleges who give loans, and students who take them out. The pool of college applicants will (and should) shrink, especially as to less worthy degrees.

Frankly, there is no reason that a history student should have the same tuition cost as an engineering student, nor that a history teach gets paid the same as an engineering teacher. The market DEMANDS that they not be treated equally, because they just ARE NOT worth the same. Yet the professors get paid the same, and the students pay the same, when they are demonstrably, measurably, PROVABLY not equally valuable.

Whole system is ****ed up.

Whatever, this is all pie-in-the-sky. None of this will happen. Eventually, maybe, when a college tuition and loan takes an average of 40 years to repay, people will wise up. Until then, forget it.

A student is required to take classes, at least at my school, regarding the employment prospects, the hiring trends and the cost of loans and their impact. They are well educated on the likelihood of what's coming and chose to live for the now.

The most intelligent solution is for the schools to assign a risk rating on degrees and adjust loan payouts accordingly.

Furthermore, history is valuable as well as some other programs and to keep them costs the same, so I can see the reason for tuition being equal. However, the big problem is trying to attract students to the campus to compete with other campuses in the "student mill." I have been here for a year and their have been 5 proposed rate increases. Each one was campus improvements in such areas as expanding the student center, building a new performing arts center, new practice gym, and other cosmetic changes. Keep in mind that the biggest pain in the ass at my school is the ungodly parking situation. There has been no proposed remedy for that.